The State of Her: The Future for Irish Feminism

Although some high-profile victories have been won regarding women’s safety and wellbeing in Ireland in recent years, it seems clear that these movements have, in some places, failed to reach the most vulnerable women in Irish society. How far, really, have we come?

Between the women whose privacy was violated in the recent Discord leak, the untenable costs of reproductive healthcare, the women still struggling to survive the trauma of institutionalisation, and the daily harassment and violence faced by trans women and women of colour, it’s clear that there is still much work to do.

Joining Melatu Uche Okorie in conversation are Louise O’Neill and Caelainn Hogan, two writers whose work interrogates, in very different forms, the history of discrimination, inequality, and violence against women that has become Ireland’s legacy.

Louise O’Neill is a writer of books for young people and adults. Her first novel, Only Ever Yours, was released in 2014 and went on to win the Sunday Independent Newcomer of the Year award, the Eilís Dillon Award and the YA Book Prize. After the Silence was released in September 2020 and became an instant bestseller. It won the Crime Fiction Novel of the Year at the Irish Book Awards.

Caelainn Hogan is an Irish writer and journalist. Her first book, Republic of Shame, explores the ongoing legacy of Ireland’s religious-run institutions. She has reported internationally on conflict, migration and inequality. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, VICE Magazine and The Washington Post.

Melatu-Uche Okorie was born in Enugu, Nigeria and has been living in Ireland for twelve years. She has an MPhil in Creative Writing from Trinity College, Dublin. Her work has been published in Dublin: Ten Journeys One Destination (2010), Alms on the Highway, LIT Journal, College Green Magazine. Her debut collection, This Hostel Life, was published in 2018.

This is a live broadcast event and will have a Q&A at the end.  If you’d like to ask a question, you can do so via Youtube’s live chat.